john maus @ other music

belated live experience: john maus at other music. i've heard about john's one of a kind performances. i caught a glimpse of john stepping into other music for his sound check. he looked like any other thirty-something popping in for some vinyl. oh friends, i was deceived. john turns it up a notch for the live. whether he is clutching his heart or thrusting his fists in the air, the boy is jumping up a storm. being 5 feet from him and i totes got the full on effect. his latest "we must become pitiless censors of ourselves" is the soundtrack to the celebration after we overcame the rapture. dark and looming, but an uplifting punk element to arouse riots of joy.

fltgc: marc di suvero @ governor's island

jersey shore

the extraordinary ordinary life of jose gonzalez

as if i didn't already have a crush on jose gonzalez, seeing him play live and watching the new roc-doc on him, "the extraordinary ordinary life of jose gonzalez" sent my heart of hearts soaring. wrote about it here.

midnight in paris

slightly over-hyped flick: midnight in paris. first off i'm not saying i didn't like, i just didn't like it as much i thought i would. i heard rumblings of likeness to purple rose for cairo, and the opening sequence was a throw back to manhattan in a francophile's lens. both aforementioned films are my favs of woody's. overall it was fine and the references to writers and artists of the past was playful, but it was lacking a je nai se pas. the opening lingered a bit too long for me though i love the postcard snapshots of everyday parisian life and how the different times in the day really emphasized the city of lights.

i am not a francophile, unlike some of my friends, but i do appreciate the inspiration that the city produces. midnight in paris wasn't a great work, but a good one at best. my pal young, who is a woody fan like myself, hated it. i can't go that far. i was entertained though it made me miss his classics. fyi brooklyn kids, manhattan opens the brooklyn bridge park movies with a view on july 7. that is woody at his best.

beirut @ northside fest

best "it's been a long time, long time now" performance: beirut at the northside festival. how shar has never seen beirut until last night is beyond me. zach was adorbs as expected and the horns were in full force. it was touch and go as thunderstorms pounded new york on the hour, but the skies miraculously cleared as yellow ostrich took the stage. followed by a thrilling set (despite annoying loud conversing gal next to me) by sharon van etten. my love for her is great as you would know if you are a follower of my blog. extra extra awesome bonus was aaron dessner of the national joining sve for her set. there were closing hugs between the two. cutes! the finale with zach and gang was everything i was anticipating and more. zach did throw out a few hips swivels to bring a big grin on this gal's face. zach encored solo with "the penalty" saying he hadn't played the tune in a while. a fab night to remember. off to play this on repeat.

nate lowman @ gbe and maccarone...

caught the nate lowman show before it closes tomorrow. it truly was a trash landing.

joan!

more at maccarone

found out that harris lieberman no longer occupies the vandam space on my way to kate werble.

nathan azhderian goes screen printing

arthur ou

john houck channeling tauba

jp morgan chase corporate challenge

best accomplishment of yesterday: 31:58!!!! holy cannoli! shar does not like running, but she will for work once a year. this year the jp morgan chase corporate challenge had bar codes embedded in our bibs, so i actually found out my time. woot! friends, i never run this fast but when you are running with thousands of people shoulder to shoulder you run for your life or risk being trampled. considering bumping up to a 10k this fall. anyone wanna torture themselves with me?

beirut - white vinyl

it's mine thanks to my pal in london. lovely white vinyl and two choice tracks, east harlem and goshen. all set for my date with zach friday.

super gr8

best throwback to spielberg: super 8. omg this satisfied my summer blockbuster craving. it was et meets goonies and ending with close encounters. the kid leads of joel courtney (joe) and elle fanning (alice) were the second coming of henry thomas (elliot) and drew barrymore (gertie). also it was 80's-tastic with some "my sharona" and deborah harry sing along. loves it!

the alien in this round was a la cloverfield, which you can see the jj abrams spin on it all. what jj does best is draw out the broken family elements onto the emotional stage. it's clear with all his tv series - felicity, alias and lost. daddy issues anyone?

fun notes: joel courtney was born in monterey. yay area pride! also, it was killing me to know where the film was shot. friends, it twas west virginia.

andrew bird @ ppbs

despite looming thunderstorms, last evening was perfect for the opening of celebrate brooklyn with andrew bird. there was contraband wine, cheese, meat, carrots, hummus and best of all good peeps.

lorna simpson at salon 94

must hot dang fltgc: lorna simpson at salon 94. shar first fell in love with ms. simpson's pieces after getting an education at brooklyn museum. salon 94 has lorna's venture into drawing with inkblot representations of ladies prominently showing their lush locks. lorna has chosen to emphasize the hair using a metallic gold. downstairs are large scale vintage photos of lincoln center that give me the instagram feel. closes the 18th so hop to it.

cults at other music

much anticipated live performance: cults at other music. the duo that's stolen my heart of hearts with the 2011 summer album played an in store to celebrate their self-titled release. they breezed through a 5-song set which included their single "go outside" (aka anthem for summer 2011) and my fav "you know what i mean". madeline teased that there would be an after party at their's only 2 blocks away, but then revealed they lived in a studio. har har! twas good times despite the brevity and got me the album a day early signed.